You shall receive power
when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. (Acts
1:8)
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| Pentecost stained glass window |
The promise of the
resurrected Christ before his ascension was actualized on the day of Pentecost
in two types of power: the sound “as of a rushing mighty wind” and “tongues as
of fire” (Acts 2:2-3). The advent of the Holy Spirit surpasses all possible description.
For this reason Luke the evangelist uses the word “as”.
The powerful wind
completely renews the entire atmosphere; it creates a new climate, providing a
life-giving environment of breath and energy. “This energy filled the
whole house where they were sitting.” The disciples were flooded,
immersed, “baptized” in this divine energy, as the Lord had previously
announced: “before many days you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit” (Acts
1:5).
The other type of power
is symbolized by “tongues as of fire”. It is a manifestation of the
uncreated energy of God. The fire burns, heats, enlightens. The Holy
Spirit acts within the world “as” fire, burning whatever is dangerous or not
useful – warming, comforting, strengthening. The Holy Spirit will forever
remain a source of enlightenment, revealing the truth concerning the mystery of
the Holy Trinity and of human existence.
The Holy Spirit comes in
an hour when “they were all together in one place” (Acts 2:1), in a celebration
of thanksgiving – “the Pentecost”. It comes at a gathering of the
faithful – “among the brethren” of “about a hundred and twenty” (cf. Acts
1:15), in order to transform the gathering into the Church of the Triune
God. The “rushing wind” does not originate from some earthly direction
but “from heaven”, from the “Father in heaven”. The fiery presence is
split into tongues “and one sat upon each of them”. In this way the direct
relationship between the Spirit and the Word of God (the Logos) is
revealed, along with the personal nature of the divine gifts. The Spirit
will reveal Christ as Lord and Saviour (cf. I Cor. 12:3) to human beings and
will bring him, along with his grace, into the human heart. The Holy
Spirit continues the saving work of Christ, within time and space, radiating
the divine energy; in ways, often incomprehensible to the human mind.
“The wind (pneuma) blows where it wills” (John 3:8).
The power, which the
disciples received on Pentecost with the advent of the Holy Spirit, does not
concern their spiritual progress and personal growth only. It is not an
individualistic enlightenment, a fortunate state of ecstasy for them to enjoy
on their own. It is offered for the transmission of the gospel of
salvation to all of the inhabited world, the oikoumene, to continue the
work of the transformation of the world, the work which Christ began: “You
shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my
witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the
earth” (Acts 1:8). The disciples, who until then had been afraid, are
turned into courageous apostles, the ones who are sent to continue the ministry
of Christ in the world. And the Church becomes for all time “apostolic”.
The steadfast desire of
each of the faithful is to become a temple of the Holy Spirit, for the
personality of each one to be perfected with the maturity of the fruits of the
Spirit within them (Gal. 5:22), so that each may become a bearer of the Spirit
of love, truth, holiness and reconciliation within their surroundings, to those
both near and far, and to contribute to a constant renewal of humanity.
Every celebration of
Pentecost offers a new opportunity to each church community and to each of us,
to live eucharistically and doxologically the advent and gift of the Holy
Spirit, to renew our trust in the Spirit’s power and to implore with all of the
intensity of our soul:
--Message of the World Council of Churches
presidents at Pentecost, 2011
presidents at Pentecost, 2011
God Is Still In Control!
Miss Lladale Carey
Web Content Producer
www.umcgiving.org
lcarey@umcom.org
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